The Naseem Initiative, a voluntary programme started by the Bahraini Youth Forum Society (BYFS) in 2013, aims to provide emotional support to disadvantaged sections of society, such as the differently abled, and abused women and children. “By producing ‘art awareness projects’ like short films, music clips, paintings, photography, calligraphy and caricatures, we shed light on their issues, suffering and aspirations, and channel their voice to the broader community,” says Enas Al Fardan, who heads the initiative. “The artworks and projects gain attention through various social and conventional media channels and are showcased at different creative events.”
According to Enas the society seeks to engage young people and leverage their talents to support the underprivileged who need a helping hand. “It is a platform for youngsters to develop their own talents for a noble cause,” she says.
Naseem Initiative’s first three projects – ‘Turning Point’, in support of people with injury-related disabilities; ‘Enter My World’, in support of young people with autism; and ‘We Respect Her’, to fight domestic violence against women – were successful in creating awareness about pressing societal issues. The fourth initiative, ‘When You Hurt’, focuses on bullying in schools.
“Bullying is unwanted, aggressive behaviour among school-aged children that involves a real or perceived power imbalance. The behaviour is repeated, or has the potential to be repeated, over time. Both parties may have serious, lasting problems – people who were bullied as children are more likely to suffer from depression and low self-esteem, well into adulthood, and the bullies themselves are more likely to engage in criminal behaviour later in life. Several incidents have resulted in children committing suicide due to being bullied at school, which shows how serious and dangerous this problem can be. However, many victims do not speak up against it,” says Enas.
She believes that for schools to have a healthy environment that produces well-educated and balanced graduates, all violent acts, including bullying, need to be stemmed. “Our main objective is to educate students, parents, teachers and the rest of the community on the real meaning of bullying, what it entails, its dangerous consequences on both the bully and the bullied in the short and long term, and, most importantly, how we can fight it. Furthermore, we advocate strengthening the schools’ policies against these acts as well as procedures to minimise the problem.”
This one-year project, running until November 2018, will deliver several activities including conducting a study which will measure the prevalence of bullying in Bahrain’s schools, understanding the root causes and recommending actions to prevent and curtail the issue. Anti-bullying workshops will be held for students of private schools and simple, yet creative, infographics on the subject will be spread across social media, posters and stationery.
Enas says: “Short videos explaining the meaning of bullying, and how students can protect themselves, as well as a music clip with influential lyrics are to be produced. Paintings, photography, calligraphy and caricature works will highlight the act’s negative impact. Our social media awareness campaign will have short videos of famous celebrities from the GCC and Middle East to talk about the topic and encourage everyone to support its end. A video competition for the youth and an open forum with parents on how to address the issue along with a specialised panel to address their questions will also be held.”
All of the artworks, videos and music clips will be showcased in an Art and Awareness festival on May 5, coinciding with International Anti Bullying Day.
Project partners are the Be Free Programme and Heads and Hearts Psychotherapy and Counselling Centre. “We are also going to approach the Shura Council, Child Protection Centre, and similar organisations to be on board with us,” Enas says.
